Human Rights Glance
Israel has provided no evidence that hundreds of U.N. aid workers in Gaza are affiliated with Hamas, but the aid agency needs more "robust" screening to ensure neutrality among its workforce, an independent review released Monday has found.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ordered the review after Israel accused workers with the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) of providing support for the attack on Israel that ignited the Hamas-Israeli war. More than a dozen nations, including the U.S., halted funding for the agency when the allegations became public.
The review was prompted by Israeli allegations that at least 12 UNRWA employees were directly involved in the Hamas-led attack Oct. 7, another 30 supported the attack in some way, and as many as 12% of the organization’s staff were affiliated with the militant group. UNRWA has over 13,000 aid workers in Gaza.
"Moving forward, the secretary-general appeals to all stakeholders to actively support UNRWA, as it is a lifeline for Palestine refugees in the region," his office said in a statement.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying Hamas is tied in so closely to UNRWA that “it is impossible to say where UNRWA ends and Hamas begins.”
In addition to using firearms to attack Palestinians, settlers and Israeli forces also torched hundreds of homes, buildings and cars in the West Bank, per OCHCR. Shamdasani said that settlers also reportedly established at least two new illegal outposts this week “near Palestinian communities which have been repeatedly attacked by settlers in the past months and are at imminent risk of being forcibly transferred from their homes and land.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a law that prevents cities or counties from creating protections for workers who labor in the state's often extreme and dangerous heat.
U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Samantha Power acknowledged on Tuesday that humanitarian aid into Gaza had risen sharply in the past few days, and said the higher level of aid should be sustained and increased further.
